


A Rose Has Thorns (RWBY AU)

by PossiblyAwesomeAO3



Category: Minecraft diaries - Fandom, Mithzan and Friends, RWBY, The RageGaming Crew
Genre: Aphmau - Freeform, Barney - Freeform, Cheese, Gen, Laura - Freeform, Pocket, TIME FOR SOME RWBY SHIT, Zane - Freeform, although i guess if it's not completely original you probably know that it's writing practice by now, anzlotte, captainfluke - Freeform, danni - Freeform, evanz111 - Freeform, garroth - Freeform, generationhollow - Freeform, gubiakgames - Freeform, i do a lot of writing practice, it's a mystery, juke, leni - Freeform, mithzan - Freeform, more writing practice, peacefulroar - Freeform, ragegamingvideos - Freeform, redvacktor - Freeform, so many youtubers shoved into one thing your head will spin, will i ever stop making aus, yourpalross - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-27
Updated: 2017-03-21
Packaged: 2018-09-10 13:56:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,014
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8919766
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PossiblyAwesomeAO3/pseuds/PossiblyAwesomeAO3
Summary: This is the story of the world of Remnant, of heroes and villains, of Huntsman and Huntresses. This is the story of Dust, of weapons, of defenses and guards. This is the story of teams, of rocky alliances and dangerous friends. This is a story of Grimm, with their fear and hatred. This is the story of four students. This is the story of their adventures. 
This is the story of a dark-eyed boy with a red hood.





	1. The Rose Blooms

**Author's Note:**

> i know. 
> 
> i do too many aus. 
> 
> but they're fun, and it's decent writing practice, so i'm gonna keep doing them. 
> 
> also i'm sorry for the cruddy summary but i finished this at 2:30 am. fight me. 
> 
> the original rwby that this story's based on was created by monty oum (may he rest in peace) and is owned by rooster teeth. this is a non-profit thing for fun. please don't sue me.
> 
> (also this one has so many youtubers in it's gonna make your head spin. be prepared to be lost and confused.)

_Legends._

_Stories scattered through time._

_Mankind has grown quite fond of retelling the stories of old, of times long gone._

_They forget so easily  that we are all simply remnants of the times that those legends come from._

_So here is one such legend to help them remember._

_Man, who was born from dust, was strong, wise, and resourceful._

_But he was born into an unforgiving world, one that wished to rip him from the pedestal he thought he stood upon._

_The inevitable darkness set it's sights on Man in the form of the creatures of Grimm._

_These two forces clashed, and it seemed as though the darkness was intent on sending Man back to the dust from which he came._

_However, even the slightest spark of hope is enough to ignite change._

_Man's passion, ingenuity, and resourcefulness led them to the tools and power they needed to fight back._

_This power was, appropriately named, Dust._

_With their newfound tools in hand, Man set out to take on the darkness, lighting their way through the everlasting night._

_With the light came strength in their numbers, which led to civilization, and most importantly, life._

_But here is your warning._

_Even the brightest lights will eventually flicker and die._

_And when they are gone, Darkness will return once more._

_So you may prepare your defenses. Your guardians. Your weapons._

_But take heed._

_There will be no victory in strength._

**_"Yes, well, perhaps victory can be found in things you've long forgotten. Things found in a smaller, more honest soul."_ **

 

**\--------**

_"They see you as small and helpless..."_

\--------

 

A group of men walked through the streets of the cold city late one night. The moon, split into many pieces, shone above, illuminating the dark streets.

The man leading them lit the end up a cigar as they walked, a casual smirk on his face. His dark hair was hidden mostly under a dark bowler-style hat, and his golden eyes gleamed. The other men remained in uniform, their dark suits blending in easily with the night sky. 

They came to their destination soon enough. The only building with its windows still lit, a little store called _From Dust Til Dawn_. The men pushed open the doors and walked inside, to see only the shopkeeper sitting alone at the front desk. 

The supposed leader put out the cigar, crossing his arms over his chest. 

"Now, see, this is what I call good service. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a dust shop open this late?" 

At his last few words, one of his men took out a gun, aiming it at the shopkeeper's head. The shopkeeper raised his arms in surrender. 

"Please, just take my money and leave!" 

"Shh, calm down." The leader of the group said. "We're not here for your money." 

He glanced at the other men. "Grab the dust." 

One of the leaders' men hoisted two cases onto the counter of the front desk. One was empty, and the other was full of empty dust cartridges. Half of the men took the empty dust cartridges and began filling them up at various stations. 

"Crystals. All of them." One of the men said to the shopkeeper, pointing towards the empty chest. The shopkeeper reluctantly obliged, slowly removing the different crsytals of dust from the display case. 

One man took another cartridge, heading over the other side of the store, where more dust was waiting. A flash of red caught his eye, and he turned to see a figure in a red cloak, who had their back facing him. The hood of the cloak was up, making it impossible for the man to see any defining features, aside from the fact that the person was considerably shorter than he was. 

The man pulled out his sword. "Alright, kid. Hands where I can see 'em."

The person didn't respond. 

"Hey, I said hands in the air!" The man exclaimed, walking closer to the person. 

Still, the person didn't respond. 

"You got a death wish or something, kid?" The man asked, grabbing the person's shoulder and forcibly turning him around, the person's hood falling off in the process.

The man could see two startled dark eyes staring at him from behind a pair of glasses. The boy's hair was just as dark as his eyes, and a pair of headphones covered his ears. 

"Huh?" The boy asked, not removing his headphones, and the man could faintly hear some sort of music still playing through them. 

The man pointed at his own ears, and the boy seemed to get the picture, sliding his headphones off so that they hung around his neck. 

"Yes?"

"I said, put your hands in the air, now!" 

"Are you...robbing me?" The boy asked, tilting his head in confusion. 

"Yes!" The man exclaimed, exasperated. 

The boy's eyes widened, but not in shock, rather, in understanding. 

"Ohh." 

 

\--------

_"They see you as just a child..."_

\--------

 

The leader of the group leaned on the counter as the men collected the dust, twirling the cigar around in his fingers absentmindedly. 

His head was turned at the sound of a shout, and he was just able to see one of his men crash into one of the shelves, knocking the dust to the ground. 

The leader rolled his eyes, giving a pointed look towards the nearest of his men, and nodded in the direction the other man had come from. 

The man nodded in response, running over to where the boy was standing, pointing his gun at him. 

"Freeze!" 

 

\--------

_"Surprised when they find out that a warrior will soon run wild."_

\--------

 

The next thing the leader knew, the man and the boy went crashing through the store's front window. The leader and his men looked out into the street to see the boy stand up. He had something resting on his shoulder that seemed to resemble some sort of large gun, but he pressed a button, and the gun expanded into a scythe that was twice the size of the boy. 

The boy glanced over at the men, who were staring at him in shock. He smiled, and slammed the end of the scythe into the ground. 

The leader narrowed his eyes. "Okay..." 

He looked around at the remaining three men, who were still standing still. 

"Well, what are you waiting for?" He said. "Get him!" 

The three men snapped out of it, each pulling a red sword from hidden scabbards by their sides, and charged the boy. 

The boy jumped at the last second, keeping a hold on his scythe and kicking the first man in the face, knocking him down. The boy ripped the blade of the scythe out of the ground, whirling it around with ease. He slammed the scythe into the second man, sending him flying into the air, and turned just in time to see the third man's sword headed straight for him. 

The boy ducked, the sword narrowly missing him. He moved fast, swinging his scythe and knocking the man's feet out from under him, bringing him down hard on the ground. The boy slammed the butt-end of his scythe into the man before he had a chance to get up, knocking him out cold. 

The first man had gotten back up, and tried to charge the boy, but the boy was just fast enough. He moved, dodging another sword attack, and moved his finger so that it curled around a hidden trigger on the handle of the scythe. 

A red glow burst from the top of the scythe, hitting the first man dead center in the chest. The man fell backwards, inches away from the leader. 

The leader looked down at the first man, completely unfazed. "You were worth every cent, truly, you were." 

The leader looked back up at the boy, who was holding his scythe with both hands, and was staring directly at the leader. 

"Well, _Red_ , I think it's safe to say that it's been an eventful evening." 

The man dropped his cigar on the ground, and pulled a seemingly harmless cane from the inside of his jacket, pressing the end of it down on the cigar, flattening it. 

"And as much as I would love to stick around..." 

With those words, the man lifted the cane, pointing it at the boy, and the end flipped open, becoming a scope.

"I believe _this_ is where we part ways." The man finished. 

Suddenly, an explosion rocketed from the end of the cane, and the boy had just enough time to hold up his scythe in defense before it hit the scythe dead on, knocking the boy backward. 

He regained his balance, but looked up to discover that the leader had disappeared. He glanced around the city, looking for any signs of him. 

_There._

The boy spotted the leader climbing up the ladder on the side of the building. 

He looked over at the shopkeeper, who was standing by the door, eyes wide with fear. 

"Will you be okay if I go after him?" The boy asked. 

The shopkeeper nodded, and the boy smiled. He ran towards the ladder, aiming the end of his scythe towards the ground. He fired again, and the blast sent him flying up towards the roof. He managed to catch the ledge with his free hand, and pulled himself up, his arms slung over the ledge while his feet still dangled in the air. The leader's back was turned towards him, and he was standing at the other edge of the rooftop. 

"Hey!" The boy yelled. 

The leader didn't even bother to turn his head. 

"Persistent little brat..."

As the boy pulled himself the rest of the way up, a huge airship rose to the other side of the rooftop. The leader jumped on without hesitation as it rose higher, and the boy just had time to look up as the man held up a red crystal, looking directly at the boy. 

"End of the line, _Red_!" The leader yelled, throwing the crystal towards the boy's feet. He lifted his cane as the boy remembered what red dust crystals were. 

_Explosive._

The leader fired, and the boy tried to back up, tripping over his own feet in the process and falling backwards. 

He raised his hands to shield his face, barely spotted the flash of purple that suddenly appeared before him. 

BOOM.

The explosion went off, nearly killing the boy's ears, but somehow, he was alive. 

He lowered his arms to see a woman standing in front of him, holding out something that looked like a wand. A glowing purple shield hovered in front of the both of them. Her brown hair was tied into a neat bun at the base of her neck, and a purple cape was blown backward by the turbines of the airship. 

The boy got to his feet, and was able to see the leader, who was glaring at the woman. 

"Hmph." The woman brushed back a lock of hair from her face, and swiped her wand in the air. The shield dissipated into four glowing bursts of light that targeted the airship, crashing into it.

The leader struggled to keep his balance as the airship rocked from side the side, the blasts knocking it off balance. Still, he managed to keep a hold of his cane, and made his way towards the cockpit, where a woman sat, doing her best to keep the ship steady.

"We've got a Huntress!" He yelled, and she immediately stood up, leaving the cockpit and leaving the leader to hurriedly grab the controls.  

Back on the roof, the woman pointed her wand towards the sky, and a large glowing sigil appeared in the air above the airship. Storm clouds appeared from the sigil, and loud thunder boomed. The woman swung her wand downwards, and large crystals of ice rained down onto the ship. One smashed through the cockpit window, barely missing the leader's head. 

The woman from the cockpit stepped out onto one of the decks of the airship, but her face was completely obscured. All that could be seen from the roof was the woman's red dress, and the gloves on her hands. 

The woman on the rooftop narrowed her eyes, getting the feeling that this was no ordinary criminal. 

The woman on the airship moved her hand out towards the rooftop, and a blast of fire headed straight for the other woman. A purple shield appeared in front of her in just the nick of time, but seconds after it had gone down, an orange glow appeared underneath her. 

The woman on the rooftop jumped backward, and from where the glow had been, an explosion blew bits of the rooftop apart, sending pieces of debris flying everywhere. 

The woman on the rooftop waved her wand, and the pieces of debris began to glow purple. As she directed them with her wand, they all came together to form a giant rotating spear in midair. The spear went flying towards the desk the other woman was stood on, but before it could make it there, blasts of fire knocked it apart. 

The debris only stayed in free fall for a split second before they came together in a smaller spear, but this time, they aimed for the cockpit. 

The leader thought quickly, tilting the ship at the last second. The spear narrowly missed it's mark, zooming past the ship.

The woman on the roof frowned, and swung her wand again. The spear split into three, each aiming for a different section of the ship. 

The ship swerved around, the leader hoping to dodge at least one hit, and the woman on the deck of the airship lost her balance, gripping on to the wall to steady herself. She moved her arms, and three orange glowing circles appeared around her. She thrust her arms outwards seconds later, and instantly, every piece of debris went up in flames. 

The boy shook his head, snapping into reality. He pressed a button on his scythe, changing it back into its larger gun form, and started firing bullets towards the woman on the airship. She held up her hand, easily blocking each bullet, but the boy continued to fire, hoping to get at least one solid shot on her. 

Suddenly, he was thrown forward by an invisible force, slamming hard into the ground. He looked back in time to see the woman on the rooftop pointing her wand towards him as she jumped forward, narrowly missing being hit by the explosions that had been forming on the ground. 

The boy turned back towards the airship to see it speeding away, too far for either of them to reach.

The woman lowered her hand, frowning as she watched the airship fly off. 

The boy got to his feet. 

“You’re a Huntress.” The boy said, looking over at the woman in awe.

She glanced back at him, a disapproving look on her face.

“That’s so cool!” The boy grinned.

 

\--------

_"Prepare for your greatest moments..."_

\--------

 

“I hope you understand that your actions tonight will not be taken lightly, young man.”

The boy had his arms crossed, glaring at the table in front of him. He was sitting in a metal chair, and it almost felt like he was sitting in an interrogation room.

“You put yourself and others in grave danger.” The woman continued, pacing around in front of him.

“They started it!” He protested.

“And you had no business finishing it.” She said. “If it were up to me, you’d be sent straight home.”

She hesitated for a moment before adding, “With a pat on the back.”

The boy smiled. So he had done the right thing - she just didn’t want to admit it.

“And a slap on the wrist.” She finished, and the boy’s grin disappeared.

The woman sighed. “But, there is someone here who’d like to meet you.”

Right as she said it, a man entered the room. His hair was a rusty brown color, and his brown eyes seemed to stare straight through the boy.

“Josh Rose.”

The boy flinched a little at the sound of his last name. _Ugh_.

The man sat down in another metal chair across from Josh, and looked directly at his eyes.

“You...have black eyes.” The man said.

“Um.” Josh said, slightly leaning away.

The woman brought up a hologram image of a video that must have been from the street cameras, showing Josh as he took on the men from before, his scythe in hand.

“Where did you learn to do this?” The man asked, nodding his head towards the screen.

“Uh,” Josh hesitated a little, nervous. “Signal Academy?”

“They taught you to use one of the most dangerous weapons ever created?” The man asked.

“Well, one teacher in particular.” Josh said.

There was a pause.

“I see.” The man said. “It’s just that I’ve only seen one scythe wielder of that skill before. A man called Zane.”

“That’s my uncle Zane.” Josh absentmindedly mumbled, watching the screen to see how the leader of the group had gotten away. He should have gotten up faster, maybe then he could have stopped him-

“What was that?” The man asked.

Josh snapped back into reality.

“Sorry. That’s my uncle Zane. He’s a teacher at Signal. I was complete garbage before he took me under his wing, and now, I’m like a scythe ninja!” He grinned.

Silence.

“So I see.” The man said. “And what is a young boy such as yourself doing at a school designed to train warriors?”

“First of all, I’m not that young. I’m sixteen.” Josh said. “And second, I want to be a Huntsman.”

“You want to slay monsters?” The man asked.

“Yeah.” Josh said. “I only have two more years of training left at Signal, and then I’m going to apply to Beacon. My sister’s starting there this year, and she’s trying to become a Huntress, and I want to be a Huntsman because I want to help people. And my parents always taught us to help others, and I was like ’well, y’know, why not?’ I mean, the police are alright, but being a Huntsman just sounds more exciting and cool and _gah_ , you know?”

Even more silence.

“Do you know who I am?” The man asked.

“You’re Professor Zan.” Josh said, crossing his arms. “You’re the headmaster at Beacon.”

“Hm.” The man smiled slightly. “Hello.”

“Nice to meet you.” Josh replied.

“You want to come to my school?” Zan asked.

“More than anything.” Josh said, nodding.

Zan glanced over at the woman and smiled. She rolled her eyes, huffing and shaking her head slightly.

Zan looked back at Josh. “Well, okay.”

 

\--------

_"Prepare for your finest hour..."_

 --------

 

“I can’t believe my baby brother's going to Beacon with me! This is so exciting!”

“I’m not a baby.” Josh said, struggling to get out of the hug his sister had pulled him into. “Please stop.”

“But I’m so proud of you!” She grinned, letting go of him anyway.

“Really, Emily, it was nothing.”

“Didn’t seem like nothing in the video that got sent home to Mom.” Emily replied. “Everyone at Beacon’s going to think you’re the bee's knees!”

“I don’t want to be the bee’s knees, I don’t want to be any kind of knees, okay? I just want to be a normal person with normal knees." Josh said.

“What’s with you?” Emily asked. “Aren’t you excited?”

“Of course I’m excited, it’s just…” Josh sighed. “I got moved ahead two years. I don’t want people to think I’m special, or something.”

“But you _are_ special.” Emily smiled.

Josh opened his mouth to respond, but another student had turned on the news. A hologram screen appeared on the other side of the airship they were on as they traveled to Beacon Academy. The sound of the announcer’s voice blasted through the airship, as a picture of the man Josh had fought against appeared on the screen.

“ _Witnesses can confirm that the robberies were led by the nefarious criminal Tristan Curaxu, who continues to evade authorities. Any information relating to his whereabouts is to be reported at your nearest police station as soon as possible. Back to you in the studio, Lisa.”_

_“Thank you, Cyril. In other news, a peaceful Faunus protest in the center of the kingdom turned dark when members of the White Fang disrupted the ceremony. The once peaceful organization has now disrupted-”_

The screen suddenly switched, fizzling from the news to a hologram of the same woman who had caught Josh fighting against Curaxu.

“ _Hello, and welcome to your first year at Beacon Academy.”_

“Who’s that?” Emily asked.

“ _My name is Krista Chezan_.”

“Oh.” 

“ _You are among a privileged few who have been selected to attend this prestigious academy. You have trained long and hard in your previous academies, and now, it is our turn to teach you everything we know, and everything you need to know to become true Huntsmen and Huntresses. Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace, and soon, it will be your turn to defend this peace. The ship will be landing in about ten minutes.”_

The hologram fizzled out, and suddenly, large panels in the walls of the ship opened up, revealing large windows that let in immense amounts of sunlight.

Josh squinted as his eyes adjusted. “Oh, _wow_.”

He ran to the window, pressing his hands against the glass and staring out at the view. The airship was flying over the kingdom of Vale, heading straight for the tallest tower of the kingdom, Beacon Tower.

“Look,” Josh said, pointing to a large building in the far left of the view as Emily walked up next to him. “You can see Signal from up here.”

He sighed, pressing his forehead against the glass. “I guess home isn’t that far after all.”

“Beacon’s our home now.” Emily said, lightly shoving his shoulder.

Josh glanced over to the side, noticing a girl who seemed to be turning slightly green. She put her hand over her mouth and ran from the window towards the bathroom, her blonde ponytail bouncing as she hurried.

“Guess the view isn’t for everyone.” Emily shrugged, her eyes following the girl.

“It was a nice moment while it lasted.” Josh shrugged.

“So, who do you think we’re gonna meet?” Emily asked. “I’m hoping for some good competition.”

“I just hope they’re better than Vomit Girl.” Josh said, turning back towards the window.

Beacon Tower grew closer and closer, a giant that loomed over the entire city. It felt both menacing and welcoming, like it represented home for so many people, but if you tried to take it down you would be gravely sorry.

Josh took a deep breath.

_“Here we go.”_

 

_\--------_

_"The dream that you've always dreamed is suddenly about to flower."_

_\--------_


	2. The Shining Beacon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey check it out y'all this story's not dead

\---------

 

"Woah."

Josh and Emily spoke at the same time as they made it off of the ship, and Beacon Academy rose up above them. The Tower sat in the center of it all, one grand peak in the midst of all of the dark grey buildings that made up the academy. Emily whistled. 

"The view from Vale's got _nothing_ on this." 

Josh bounced up and down, looking around at all of the other students who were milling around the courtyard. He poked Emily’s arm excitedly, pointing at the other students’ weapons.

“Em, Em, look! That kid’s got a collapsible staff! And she’s got a fire spear! And they’ve got-”

He started towards a kid with a pair of rifles strapped to their back, but Emily grabbed a hold of his hood, pulling him backwards.

“What are you, five?" She joked. "They’re just weapons.”

Josh gave her a look like she had just kicked a puppy.

“Just weapons?” He said. "Alright, that's it. I can't talk to you anymore." 

“Okay, okay, I get it." Emily said, shaking her head. "You’re a dork for weapons, but can’t you save the swooning and fawn over your own? Aren’t you happy with it?”

"I'm not _swooning_." Josh protested. “Of course I’m happy with Crescent Rage. It’s just cool to see other people’s weapons. Y'know, ones that aren’t yours.”

“Excuse me, Ember Fluke is badass, and you will treat it as such.”

“Because what is essentially two yellow Mega Man blasters is so cool.” Josh grinned.

“Hey, you have no room to talk, Mr. EdgeLord Scythe Boy.” Emily said, socking him in the arm.

“Ow!”

“Look, if you like other people’s weapons so much, go ask actual other people about them. Try and find some of your own friends.” Emily said, pulling Josh’s hood down over his eyes.

“Hey!” Josh exclaimed, pushing his hood back off. “Don't touch the hood. And anyways, why would I need other friends when I have you?”

“Because I’m your sister, and we’d be at each other's throats eventually.” She said, shrugging. "The ever present rules of siblings."

Someone yelled her name, and she looked up, her eyes locking onto a group of girls who were waving at her and shouting. 

"Who're they?" 

"Some girls from my class at Signal." Emily explained. "So, I'm gonna go catch up with them, see you later!" 

"What?"

Emily waved, ignoring Josh's remark, walking over to a group of girls and leaving Josh by himself in the courtyard.

“At least tell me where we’re supposed to go!” Josh called after her. “Do we go to our dorms? Do we _have_ dorms?”

Josh’s voice was drowned out by the other students in the courtyard, who were all talking with their friends from their previous schools, and Emily didn’t respond.

“I’m feeling the love.” Josh muttered, shoving his hands in his pockets. He watched Emily’s group of friends start to walk towards the tower with some of the other students, and started to follow them.

 _Mob mentality_ , he thought to himself. _Follow the crowd and I’ll eventually get to where I’m supposed to go._

He stared up at Beacon Tower as he walked, amazed by the sheer height of the thing. From the ground, it felt like it was thousands of feet tall, and he could just barely see the giant green dust crystals that powered it at the very top.

“Wow.” He breathed.

And of course, the universe chose that moment to make him accidentally run into someone.

He tripped over a white suitcase, falling flat on his face and knocking the suitcase to the ground. The case opened, and a few vials spilled out, rolling across the ground.

_Ow._

“Hey, what’s the big idea?”

Josh pushed himself up to see a boy with brown hair standing in front of him. His arms were crossed across his chest, and he stood there, tapping his foot slightly, almost like a disappointed parent.

“Sorry, I wasn’t looking-”

“Obviously.” The boy said, his blue eyes narrowing. He uncrossed his arms, stooping to pick up the vials. He stared at every one for a few seconds before putting it away, as if he was inspecting it. Finally, he sighed, clicking another vial back into place in his suitcase. “You are so damn lucky you didn’t break any of it.”

“What is it?” Josh asked, his sudden curiosity getting the better of him as he leaned over, peering into the suitcase. 

"What, are you brain dead?" The boy glared at him, pulling his suitcase a little further away. “Have you never seen Dust before?”

“Well, yeah, I-”

“Look, this is Dust that’s been mined and purified in the Schnee quarry. It’s valuable. Don’t mess with it.”

As the boy was talking, Josh noticed a vial that was still lying by his feet, filled with red dust.

“Hey, you missed this one.” He said, leaning to pick it up.

“Wait!” The boy exclaimed, make Josh jump a little right as he picked up the vial, causing him to drop it again. Right on impact, the vial exploded. Both boys were blown backwards. The suitcase was knocked over, the vials spilling out and rolling across the stone. Several other students jumped. One even screamed. 

Josh sat up, wiping the soot off his glasses. As he put his glasses back on, he could see a small crater in the stone pathway towards the tower, and the smoke that was still lazily drifting through the air. 

“Holy _shit_.”

“Are you kidding me?” The boy said, glaring at Josh. The boy brushed his hair out of his eyes as he spoke, but seemed too mad to try and dust off the slight layer of gray that covered his clothes. “Are you actually kidding me?”

“Look, I’m sorry, but you’re the one who freaked me out by yelling.” Josh said.

“I can’t believe this.” The boy muttered, packing his suitcase back up and collecting the vials off of the ground for a second time. He looked back up at Josh. “What are you even doing here anyway? Aren’t you a little young to be attending Beacon?”

“Uh…”

“This isn’t just an ordinary combat school, you know." The boy said, zipping his suitcase shut and standing up. He was about an inch taller than Josh. "We’re here to fight monsters and become warriors, so you should really learn to be less clumsy.”

Josh decided right then he didn’t like this person.

“Hey, I said I was sorry, Your Highness.” Josh said, glaring back at him. “Didn’t know I’d be running into a prince here.”

“He’s an heir, actually.”

Josh jumped a little bit when a different voice spoke. He turned at the sound of the new voice to see another boy with short brown hair approaching. There was another vial in his hand, only this one was filled with blue dust. 

“You’re Will Schnee, heir to the Schnee Dust Company, right? I thought I recognized you from somewhere.” He said.

“That’s me." Will said, smiling a little. "At least someone here knows something.”

"Hm. Shame." The new boy said, but his expression didn't change. He seemed to be locked in an unfazed expression. 

"What?"

“Well, unfortunately for you, that’s the same company that’s known for their controversial labor forces and questionable business practices.” The boy said, holding out the vial to Will. “You dropped this.”

Will’s eyes narrowed at the boy as he took the vial back. He slid it into the front pocket of his suitcase and walked away without a word, and without so much as a glance in Josh's direction. 

Josh watched him go, and thought to himself. Maybe he should have just gone with the apologetic, nice approach. The Will guy may have been kind of a jerk, but Josh had kind of run into him. And then exploded in his face. 

“Sorry again!” Josh called after him. “I’ll make it up to you!”

Will didn’t yell anything back, or even turn around.

"Guess I’m not the only one having a rough start.” Josh sighed. His expression brightened, however, when he remembered the other boy. Josh turned to face him. “So, what’s your-”

Josh blinked.

The boy had disappeared, leaving Josh by himself once again. _Great_.

“Welcome to Beacon.” He muttered to himself, tilting his head up to stare at the green crystals of Beacon Tower.

“Hello?”

Josh looked back down to see a girl with a blonde ponytail standing in front of him. She smiled when she saw his eyes on hers.

"Hi, I'm Pocket." She said, bouncing on her toes slightly. 

 

“Uh, hey. I'm Josh.” Josh said. Something about her seemed familiar, and he snorted a laugh when he realized what it was. “Wait, aren’t you the girl who threw up on the ship?” 

 

\---------

 

“Look, all I’m saying is, motion sickness is a lot more of a common problem then people let on!”

“Okay, okay, I get it.” Josh grinned as he walked beside Pocket towards the Tower. “Sorry, but ‘Vomit Girl’ is just the first thing that came to mind.”

“Oh yeah?” She asked. “What if I called you ‘Crater Face’?”

“Hey, that was an accident!”

“Well, my name’s Pocket Arc. Much better than Vomit Girl, so, I'd _really_ appreciate it if you didn't call me that." She said. 

“Only if you agree to call me Josh, and not Crater Face.”

“Agreed.” She smiled.

There was a small moment of silence, and Josh thought for a second. What to say next, what to say next, what to say next...

Like most of the time, his brain went straight for his favorite subject - cool weapons. 

"So, I got this thing.” Josh said, pulling his gun from behind his back and expanding it into a scythe. The blade end nearly slammed into the ground, but Josh caught it at the last second. Another hole in the school's grounds was the last thing he needed. 

Some of the others students who were also walking towards the Tower stared at the scythe, looking slightly impressed, but continued on their way. Most of them had seen scythes before, they were just rarer then most. Most Huntsmen went for smaller weapons that were easier to carry, the more practical choice. But Josh was...well, he was Josh, and when he decided he wanted a cool scythe, there was little anybody could do to change his mind. 

Pocket jumped a little.

“Woah! Is that a scythe?”

“It’s also a customizable, high impact sniper rifle.” Josh grinned, the same way he always did when talking about Crescent Rage. Emily always joked that it was his baby, and that he always sounded like a proud parent whenever he talked about it. 

“A _what_?”

Josh pressed a button, transforming it back into its smaller gun form, which was still about the length of his arm. 

“It’s also a gun.”

“Woah.” Pocket repeated. “That is so cool.”

“So, what’ve you got?” Josh asked, hooking his gun back onto his back.

“Oh. Uh,” Pocket said, pulling a white sword from a scabbard at her side. “I’ve got this sword.”

“Ooh.” Josh said, nodding.

“Yeah, I’ve got a shield, too.” Pocket smiled, pressing a button on a bracelet on her wrist. The bracelet expanded into a white shield, and a golden circle design adorned the center of it. 

“What do they do?” Josh asked, staring in awe. They were pretty, yes, but what made weapons really awesome was when they did something unique or interesting. 

“Uh, the shield transforms into this bracelet, so, when I get tired of carrying it, I can just...put it away.”

“But, doesn’t it weigh the same?” Josh asked, raising an eyebrow. 

“Yeah, it does.” She said, shrugging a little. “Not anything too cool, I guess.”

Oh. Well, a sword is a sword is a sword, and Josh could be down with a classic sword. It did look pretty cool, anyways. 

“I’m kind of a nerd about weapons.” Josh admitted. “I guess I did go a _little_ overboard in designing mine.”

He could almost hear Emily laughing and saying " _a little_?" 

“Wait, you made that?” Pocket asked.

“Well, yeah." Josh said, suddenly a little confused. "Everyone at Signal forges their own weapons. Didn't you make yours?”

“No, these are my grandfather’s.” Pocket said, sounding a little sheepish. “He used them to fight in the war.”

“Sounds more like a family heirloom to me.” Josh joked. “Well, I like them. A lot of people overlook classic stuff, but it's still pretty neat.”

“Yeah, classic.” She smiled.

“So, why’d you talk to me back there?” Josh asked. “I’m pretty sure everyone in their right mind would stay as far away as possible from the guy who exploded.”

“I don’t know." She shrugged. "You seemed kind of lonely. Besides, my mom always says that strangers are just friends you haven’t met yet.”

“Huh.”

“So, do you have any idea where we’re going?”

“Not a clue. I’m going with mob mentality.”

“Fair enough.” She said. “I'm a little nervous about finding the way around here, everything is so big and complicated, and... _agh_. You think there might be a sign around here, or maybe like a food court? Or some kind of recognizable landmark?”

Josh laughed.

“Probably not.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> with this story i'm mostly excited for when we get to season 3 and all that but we have to get through the first two seasons first so howdy ho here we go

**Author's Note:**

> welcome to the world of making a guy who's actually 23 or so 16 because plot convenience. he will be the youngest and tiniest of them all. 
> 
> but that's cool, because the shortest people are always filled with the most...RAGE.
> 
> see what i did there? yeah? no? 
> 
> i refuse to be sorry.
> 
> the last names are mostly going to be the same as the actual show because of all the youtubers in this. if i changed the last names, this would all get even more confusing even faster. basically, if they're a part of a ginormous family, then the last name stays the same. if they're basically the only person with the last name, it'll probably be changed. 
> 
> which means if the actual rage reads this (which i highly doubt, but if he is reading this right now, then hello, i hope you enjoyed my 2 AM fandom nonsense), he's gonna have to deal with having the last name rose. sorry 'bout your luck. 
> 
> fight me on it. you won't. pax me bro.


End file.
